Car construction.



H. M. PFLAGER. CAR cowsmucnow.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-12,1918.

Patented Sept. 24, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEETI H. M. PFLAGER.

CAR CONSTRUCTION.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.12. I918.

Patented Sept. 24, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Ewe/22W W M same, reference bein section of one of so granted July 20, 1915.

35. loaded, is Supported 50 means consisting in 1r curios.

HARRY M. PFLAGER, or sr. LOUIS, .MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR'TO COMMONWEALTH s'rnn COMPANY, or ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION or NEW JERSEY.

CAR CONSTRUCTION.

1,2so,os1,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 24, 1918.

Application filed January 12, 1918. Serial No. 211,590.

5 vented a certain-new and useful Improvement in Car Construction, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the had to the accompa'nying drawings, orming part' of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a conventional illustration in.

' "sideelevation showing my improved car 15 construction,

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of one of the trucks used in my improved construction.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view partly in my improved frames.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view on line 55 of Fig. 4. 1

F'g. 6 is a vertical sectional view on line 66 of Fig. 4.

.This invention relates to anew and useful improvement in car construction of the type illustrated in Reissue Letters Patent No. 14,221, dated November '28, 1916, the original of which, Patent No. 1,147,430, was

In the construction shown in said original and reissue Letters Patent granted'to me upon the dates beforementioned, the weight of the car body including the load, when the car. I

My present invention has for its object,

\ to provide means for distributingthe load of the car on the journals when unusual 40 track conditions exist.

and greater recoil travel. than the main sprin s, so as not to affect draw arfrom the track. a

My present invention has asitspri'ncipal object means to overcome this difficulty, this the employment of a or springs whose enthe heightof thecompensating spring low at the four corners of v ergies are stored up under normal conditions 1n readiness to be exerted in a direction to force the otherwise floating wheels down into the depression of the track whereby the treads and flanges of said wheels are not only caused to occupy their proper relation to thetrack, but part of the load of the car body at that corner where the floating wheels are located, is partially supported by said compensating springs. In the event that my present improvement is used under new steel cars, which, as stated before, are rigid in that they have very small deflection, the compensating springs will assist the rigid car body in supporting the load at that cor-v ner of the car wherein they are located, under the abnormal conditions above referred to. Where the car body is sufliciently flexible for its corners to sag or deflect and folthe otherwise floating wheels when they pass over or rest in a depression, these compensattng springs may'not be brought into action.

In the form of myinvention illustrated in the accompanying drawings, the compenup, the spring follower of the ma or springs being seated home against some soli part of the structure, this home seatlng of said follower being maintained 1n normal opera- 'satlng springs are weaker than the load tions.- However, if the minor springs are released from compression andhave a tendency to float free, the minor spring will have its energies released so as to take up in part the freedom of the major springs, and compress them to the extent that the minor spring assists in supporting the load. By the expression bottled up is-meant that the auxiliary or compensating springs 14,

which are located in a pocket in the side truck frame and under'a spring follower 8,

will he held under compression at all times, under normal load conditions, the entire weight of the car being carriedby the main supporting. springs 12 which bear upon the spring follower 8. When the wheels of the truck enter a depression and the truck side frames drop with the wheels, or one of them, the springs 12 will become exhausted, or nearly so, and consequently the Weight will be relieved from the follower plate 8 so that the energies of the springs 14 may be brought into play and to the extent that springs 14, whose energies are thus released,

lift the follower plate 8, they will slightlycompress the springs 12 and to this extent assist in supporting the load. It is not intended, however, that the springs 14 shall, at any time, under normal conditions, assist in supporting the load, because the spring follower 8 is normally in solid contact with the truck side frame and has no movement relative to the truck side frame, except under theabnormal condition above referred to, wherein the spring follower 8 may be lifted away from the truck side frame or conversely the truck side frame may be depressed away from the spring follower 8 when spring follower 14 forces the wheels to follow a depression in the track.

In the drawings, I have heretofore referred to Figs. 1 and 2 as conventionally illustrating a car body in which 1 is the body of the car, 2 the wheels, and 3 the track having a depression 3 over which the wheels at the righthand side of Fig. 1 are illustrated in full lines as floating over the depression, and in dotted lines as resting upon the track in the depression.

In Fig. 2, 4 indicates the pivotal point of the truck side frames, these being the points of reaction and showing that the car body is practically supported at its four corners.

Referring now to the details of construction of my present form of truck, 5 indicates the truck side frame, preferably in the form of a steel casting, in which the journal boxes 6 are arranged for the reception of the axles 7 on which the wheels 2 are mounted. 'lhis truck side frame is provided with a plurality of upwardly opening recesses in its central portion over which is arranged a spring follower 8 having depending lugs or guiding pins 8 operating in the recesses 5 of the truck side frames. In this manner, the spring follower 8 is guided in its vertical movement.

9 indicates a spring follower having a bearing'9 which cooperates with a bearing 10 secured to the under-frame 11 of the car, this bearing cooperating with the concave bearing in the spring follower 9 so as to permit a rocking movement therebetween. The bearing plates 8 and 9 have telescopic connection with each other and cooperate with supporting springs 12 interposed therebetween, there being a king pin 13 forming a pivotal connection between the bearing 9 and the underfraniing of the car. In the centrally arranged housing 5", there are located compensating springs 14 bearing on the underside of the follower plate 8. 15

"indicates bolts carrying compression springs and the springs 12 become exhausted, or

Will

nearly so, then the energies stored up in the springs 14 will be exerted on the under side of the follower plate 8 and assist in supporting'the load. In doing this, they overcome the action of the springs 16 whose principal function is to assist in restoring the spring follower 8 to its seat on the truck and to limit the separating movement of the parts,as for instance, when the truck is not located under a car, as when being first assembled, or removed from a car for purposes of repair. l

It is obvious that minor changes in the size, form and details of the various parts of my improved car construction may be made and substituted for those herein shown and described without departing from the splrit of myinvention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In car construction, a car underfrarne, a truck side frame having pivotal connection therewith, a spring follower mounted thereon and normally arranged for solid engagement therewith, but capable of an upward vertical movement relative thereto, and a compensating device in the form of springs arranged beneath and cooperating with said spring follower. r

2. In car construction, a car underframe, in combination with a truck side frame having pivotal connectiontherewith, support- 3. In'car construction, a truck side frame, 7

in combination with a spring follower having vertical movement relative thereto and a compensatlng device cooperating w1th said spring follow er, said spring follower being normally seated solidly against said truck side frame under normal conditions.

ing vertical compensating car construction, a truck side frame, 5 1n combination W1th a sprlng follower havmovement relative thereto, a device cooperating With said spring follower, and means for limiting the separating movement of said spring follower when actuated by said compensating device. 10 In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature this 3rd day of January, 1918.

HARRY M. PFLAGER. 

